Paper 2: Section A - 1. What is the relationship between theory and methods?

Question 1

1) What is positivism? You do NOT need to memorise this word by word but must include the words that are in CAPITAL LETTERS.

Answer 1

Positivists are the more ‘scientific’ sociologists. They favour repeating research to generate statistics, numbers, trends, ratios and comparisons. They love forming PATTERNS & TRENDS. Their research tends to be RELIABLE and objective. These findings can be converted into laws and the researcher remains VALUE FREE. This helps society remain understood, predicted and controlled. Researchers prefer QUANTATIVE DATA which collects numerical data which generates cause and effect relationships.

Question 2

2) What is interpretivism? You do NOT need to memorise this word by word but must include the words that are in CAPITAL LETTERS.

Answer 2

Interpretivists argue that society isn't a science as people are too unique and can't be generalised. They use a different approach to gain a true understanding and discover an individual's MEANINGS, EXPERIENCES AND REASONS for behaviour. This produces more VALID findings. They favour QUALATATIVE DATA as it's based on meaning and feelings and allows researchers to BUILD RAPPORT with their subjects so they feel more comfortable with you. In turn, this lets subjects be more open and truthful, increasing VALIDITY.
• verstehen and empathy
• subjectivity
• researcher imposition
• reflexivity

Question 3

3) What is validity? Who is it favoured by? What is the warning!

Answer 3

FAVOURED BY INTERPRETIVISTS.
YOU CAN ONLY HAVE VALID RESULTS!
Validity is the ability to find out what the researcher was supposed to find out. This is usually ‘the truth’. However, this is subjective as the researcher may interpret findings differently to others.

Question 4

4) What is reliability? Who is it favoured by? What is the arming?!

Answer 4

FAVOURED BY POSTIVISTS.

YOU CAN ONLY HAVE A RELIABLE METHOD!
If a hypothesis is considered reliable, then another sociologist should be able to repeat the research and obtain the same or similar results. Repetition verifies scientific accuracy therefore making it reliable as evidence.

Question 5

5) What is representativeness. What is a KEY WARNING!?

Answer 5

KEY WARNING: ONLY THE SAMPLE CAN BE REPRESENTATIVE. Cannot have a representative method

Question 6

6) What is generaliability

Answer 6

she’d

Question 7

7) Who is Weber? What theory does it fall under?

Answer 7

Max Weber was an INTERPRETIVIST who disagreed heavily with positivism. He believer that humans have conscious and active awareness and are capable of making choices and decisions via free will.

He argues that people choose to interact in social groups (families) as society is a social construct.

Question 8

8) What is VERSTEHEN? What theorist does it fall under?

Answer 8

Verstehen is the empathetic understanding of human behaviour.
Sociologists believe the real aim of sociological research is to develop empathy with the people you’re studying and experience this social world. They should put themselves in the subject’s shoes and increase validity.

Question 9

9) What is quantitive data?

Answer 9

This data is usually in numerical form which can be put into categories, rank order or measured in units of measurement. This type of data can be used to construct graphs and tables of data.

Question 10

10) What is qualitative data?

Answer 10

This data is usually in written form. It can be used to construct written reports and make theories about society.